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God DAMN It’s Cold

Suddenly it’s butt-freezing in Paris. I’m always the last person to whip out the outerwear, despite the huge assortment of it in my closet, and the many outfit flaws that one good coat can correct. But I no longer have a choice, and thus far this year, I am gravitating to one piece in particular.

That’s right, it’s fur season. This fine little guy is black broadtail and mink, and it’s a little roomy in the body, so sometimes I belt it. I got at Decades, the world’s most excellent vintage clothing store, in Salt Lake City. I made three multi-hour-long trips there in the space of a week when I was last in town to visit my uncle and aunt and cousins. (One of my cousins, Francie, is a frequent commenter here. Hi, Francie!)

I think ape shit is the only accurate way to describe how I went at Decades. It’s the size of a warehouse and jammed to the rafters with day suits and dresses and accessories and furs. Lots of furs, most in great condition, almost none over $75. It’s overwhelming, and you have to pace yourself. My brother, an excellent second opinion, was crucial for helping me edit out the piles and piles I’d amass every time. When I left town, I brought home: a sheepskin vest, the broadtail pictured above, a sable capelet, a squirrel bolero (which I gave to my sister), a mad plaid trapeze coat by Lilli Ann with a giant standup brown mink collar, a black faux-fur topcoat with bracelet-length sleeves trimmed in giant black fox fur cuffs, and a natural fox fur hat. The best thing about Decades is that it gets its stock from the area, and the women of Utah have clearly been big-boned and tall for, well, decades. Thus, it’s a “just my size” bonanza like no other vintage store I know.

My shopaholism while on that trip was embarrassing, but it inspired my darling aunt to dig into her closet for a fur and her own Lilli Ann coat, and we probably staged the first fashion show that lovely neighborhood in Salt Lake has ever seen. My cousins probably thought I was possessed; they were probably right.

OK, so obviously I’m enthusiastic. But I can get a twinge over all this dead animal. As many of you may have gathered by now, I can be more than a little PC. My justification for my fur habit: it’s all used. And it’s warm as hell.

But tell me where you stand on this one. Opinion is really split on fur, for good reasons.